HT204332: Put your Apple TV in sleep mode

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mobilerrl

Q: Apple TV/Home Kit/Schlage Sense

I read that in order to manage some functions from outside my network (using 4g or other wifi network) the   "Schlage Sense/Home Kit/Apple TV" i have to put apple tv in a "never sleep mode".....

 

is this real ?   and, it is ok that apple tv never sleep ? what can happen if it never sleep ?

AppleTV 2, iOS 9.2.1

Posted on Feb 8, 2016 6:36 AM

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Q: Apple TV/Home Kit/Schlage Sense

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  • by Protodd,Helpful

    Protodd Protodd Feb 9, 2016 11:20 AM in response to mobilerrl
    Level 4 (2,069 points)
    Feb 9, 2016 11:20 AM in response to mobilerrl

    Yes, it's true.  The Schlage communicates via Bluetooth. There is no way to "turn on" the ATV when your not onsite.  So if you want the ATV to be able to control Bluetooth periperials then it needs to be set to never sleep. 

     

    Downside is probably 2-3$ a year in wasted energy...


    I have had my ATV3 set to never sleep for 4 years.  My new ATV4 has been set to never sleep since release day.  Some HomeKit devices are controlled via wifi others are Bluetooth. But only those with bluetooth control require the hub to remain "on"

  • by mobilerrl,

    mobilerrl mobilerrl Feb 9, 2016 11:27 AM in response to Protodd
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Feb 9, 2016 11:27 AM in response to Protodd

    Thank you very much for your very kind attention. So basically it is just a matter of paying 2-3 $ a year, i do not mind paying that, i mind if the new ATV4 will not work or get broken in a much shorter time life because it is always "on", but since you mention your  ATV3 was 4 years awake it means they can be awake for a long period of years, not making great difference if they are using sleep mode in those years, is that correct ?

  • by Protodd,Solvedanswer

    Protodd Protodd Feb 9, 2016 11:48 AM in response to mobilerrl
    Level 4 (2,069 points)
    Feb 9, 2016 11:48 AM in response to mobilerrl

    I have some HomeKit devices that are Bluetooth and others that are wifi. Since the door locks are bluetooth the ATV in that room is "always on" And it is able to connect to the front doors. Yes. The 2-3$ is wasted energy use cost. I haven't had any issues (so far) with decreased life. I have now added a ATV4 (sways on) and a few additional door locks so now I can control the back door and my garage access. If they are in sleep then the Bluetooth would not be able to control anything until I wake it up. And without being able to do so remotely I have set all my ATVs to never sleep...

  • by Gino_Cerullo,

    Gino_Cerullo Gino_Cerullo Apr 23, 2016 2:23 PM in response to Protodd
    Level 3 (567 points)
    Apple TV
    Apr 23, 2016 2:23 PM in response to Protodd

    My experience does not match yours regarding the Apple TV 4.

     

    My Apple TV 4 sleeps all the time and I have no problem controlling my Schlage Sense door lock remotely.

  • by Protodd,

    Protodd Protodd Apr 23, 2016 4:14 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo
    Level 4 (2,069 points)
    Apr 23, 2016 4:14 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo

    As I alluded in my responses, it's going to depend on the devices that we use and how our networks are configured and how our setup is managed let alone where and what devices are located within our households. 

  • by Gino_Cerullo,

    Gino_Cerullo Gino_Cerullo Apr 23, 2016 6:08 PM in response to Protodd
    Level 3 (567 points)
    Apple TV
    Apr 23, 2016 6:08 PM in response to Protodd

    Sorry Protodd, there is no ambiguity in your posts. You are quite adamant that Apple TVs (3rd or 4th generation) must be set to never sleep to be used for remote access and that is not true for Apple TV 4. I agree that the $2-3 required to power a non-sleeping Apple TV is negligible and will not shorten the life of the Apple TV.

     

    Regarding Apple TV 3. I know that many people report problems accessing their HomeKit devices remotely when using Apple TV 3 and that setting it to never sleep seems to be the fix. I won't argue with you there.

  • by Protodd,

    Protodd Protodd Apr 23, 2016 6:34 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo
    Level 4 (2,069 points)
    Apr 23, 2016 6:34 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo

    If you don't - great. But even many tech sites will recommend keeping the device "always on". Here is an example "We were unable to find any official word in the Apple TV/HomeKit documentation as to whether or not you needed to set your Apple TV unit to never sleep in order for the remote HomeKit functions to work.

    After a little trial and error we established that it’s probably best if you set your Apple TV to never sleep. While we’d be happy to hear from Apple that it’s not necessary to set your Apple TV to never sleep, in our tests if the Apple TV was in sleep mode the commands didn’t pass through to the home. You can disable sleep mode by navigating to Settings -> General -> Sleep After and adjusting the setting to “Never”."

     

    http://www.howtogeek.com/234180/how-to-enable-remote-access-to-your-homekit-smar t-home-via-apple-tv/

     

    I appriciate that you have had a different experience than myself as do many other users In the technology world. But it is a best practice recommendation From valued voices in the industry...

  • by Gino_Cerullo,

    Gino_Cerullo Gino_Cerullo Apr 23, 2016 7:04 PM in response to Protodd
    Level 3 (567 points)
    Apple TV
    Apr 23, 2016 7:04 PM in response to Protodd

    Yes, I read that article and they are correct that there is no official Apple documentation regarding whether sleep mode should be disabled. I imagine that is because Apple does not believe it is necessary. The problem is that people are experiencing problems with the Apple TV 3 but I have not read of anyone who has experienced problems with the Apple TV 4 and my personal experience with Apple TV 4 corroborates the fact the sleep mode does not affect remote access to HomeKit devices.

     

    So while agree with you about setting sleep mode to never on Apple TV 3 is a good idea for trouble-free remote access it is not required for Apple TV 4. Also, people who have experienced problems with remote access are experiencing problems with both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth devices.

     

    With regard to the original post, remote access of the Schlage Sense deadbolt (which I do have) works perfectly fine with the Apple TV 4 even when the Apple TV is sleeping. What will affect remote access is distance. The Apple TV should be within about 40 ft (12 m) to work effectively.

  • by charnovitz,

    charnovitz charnovitz Apr 29, 2016 7:34 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Apr 29, 2016 7:34 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo

    I have 5 Schlage Sense locks connected in two locations to two ATV4s.  The remote access does not work.  The lock appears in the app but cannot be controlled in any way remotely.  Schlage support was no help.  One person said that the lock is not designed to operate remotely. Another suggested doing factory resets on all of the locks and trying again, but I declined that given how difficult it is to get the Schlage locks through the initial setup and updates.  Apple's phone support was limited to suggesting that the ATV and modem be restarted.  I am able to change the codes on the locks whenever I am on site and can use the same network as the ATV.  I don't know whether I am reaching the lock through the Bluetooth or the ATV.

  • by Gino_Cerullo,

    Gino_Cerullo Gino_Cerullo Apr 30, 2016 9:53 AM in response to charnovitz
    Level 3 (567 points)
    Apple TV
    Apr 30, 2016 9:53 AM in response to charnovitz

    The Schlage Sense deadbolts (locks) absolutely do work remotely using the Apple TV as a bridge. I have 100% success using it that way.

     

    The Schlage Sense deadbolts are powered by batteries therefore they use Bluetooth LE (Low Energy) to communicate. When an iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch is within range of the deadbolt it will communicate directly with the deadbolt using Bluetooth. If you want to communicate with the deadbolt but your device is not within range then the deadbolt requires a bridging device. That is where the Apple TV comes in. The Apple TV, because it can connect to Bluetooth devices and is Wi-Fi enabled, acts as a bridge between the deadbolt and your Wi-Fi network. In that situation, the deadbolt will connect to iCloud, again using the Apple TV as the bridge, so when you send commands from your devices they will do so using iCloud.

     

    The key here is that your deadbolt has to be able to communicate with your Apple TV and you must be using iCloud and especially have iCloud Keychain enabled (required to ensure a secure connection).

     

    To test this with an iPhone, disable both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on the iPhone but make sure you have mobile data enabled and a connection to your mobile network. Try to lock or unlock your deadbolt. If nothing happens try moving the Apple TV from its current location to someplace very close to the deadbolt. Test again. If you still are not having success then one or more of your settings on the iPhone is set incorrectly. If you do have success then you know that the Apple TV's normal location is too far to communicate with the deadbolt.

     

    If the problem is distance the one thing you can do is buy another bridging device. The easiest thing to buy in that case is another Apple TV (possibly the lower cost Apple TV 3) to act as that bridging device. Or, you could look for Bluetooth bridging devices to hit the market if they haven't already. One of the new features of HomeKit introduced with iOS 9 was that device manufacturers could build Bluetooth bridging devices to solve just this kind of problem.

  • by charnovitz,

    charnovitz charnovitz Apr 30, 2016 3:26 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Apr 30, 2016 3:26 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo

    Thanks Gino.  But it still doesn't work.  The apple TV is just a few feet from the locks.   I am using iCloud and keychain.  It doesn't work in either house.  I tried the test you suggested and when I turn off bluetooth and stand next to the lock I cannot open or close any lock on cellular.  I just get a spinng gear with a message that it is searching for lock.

  • by Gino_Cerullo,

    Gino_Cerullo Gino_Cerullo Apr 30, 2016 3:43 PM in response to charnovitz
    Level 3 (567 points)
    Apple TV
    Apr 30, 2016 3:43 PM in response to charnovitz

    It sounds like either the deadbolt is not making a bluetooth connection to the Apple TV or, more likely, a setting is wrong or there is a problem connecting to iCloud.

     

    Are the Apple TV and iOS devices all logged in to the same Apple ID? If not, on the Apple TV try logging in to the same Apple ID as the one that is used on the iPhone.

     

    Something else for you to try. On your iPhone go to Settings > HomeKit and turn the "Use iCloud" toggle off and then on again. If that does not work go to Settings > iCloud and sign out of your iCloud account and then back in.

     

    Let me know if that has any affect.

  • by charnovitz1,

    charnovitz1 charnovitz1 Apr 30, 2016 5:26 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Apr 30, 2016 5:26 PM in response to Gino_Cerullo

    Yes, signing out of Icloud caused me to lose my user name in this support forum.  It also screwed up my calendar by duplicating every appointment in the future.  It also deleted all of the credit cards in the Wallet.  It had no effect on the Schlage which continues to be inoperative on Wifi.  I also used the no sleep setting on the ATV as some commentators have suggested and that too had no effect on the Schlage.

  • by Gino_Cerullo,

    Gino_Cerullo Gino_Cerullo Apr 30, 2016 5:39 PM in response to charnovitz1
    Level 3 (567 points)
    Apple TV
    Apr 30, 2016 5:39 PM in response to charnovitz1

    Signing in or out of iCloud on your device should not have any affect on your ability to sign in to these forums. Sorry your calendar got screwed up. That shouldn't happen by just signing out and back in.

     

    Are you sure you have a Schlage "Sense" deadbolt and not a Schlage "Connect". They both look alike and are Bluetooth and can be controlled by a smartphone but only the Schlage Sense is HomeKit compatible.

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